Inking mechanism



A. H. PITNEY.

INKING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE I.

Patented my 19211.

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M mm. M w n a Wifuaoo A. H. PITNEY. INKING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILEDJUNE I Patented May Mk, 1921.

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A. H. PITNEY.

I'NKING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNEI Patfimbed May MR, 119211.

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ARTHUR H. PITNEY, 0F WILMETTE, ILLTLNUIIS, ASSTGNOR TO PITNEY-BOWESEXPORT CORPORATION, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, A COBPORATEON OF DELAWARE.

INKING MECHANISM. I

Specification of Letters lPatent."

Patented may 10, rear,

Kiriginal application filed March 25, 1920, Serial No. 368,701. Divided"and. this application filed. June 1,

. 1920. Serial No. 385,681.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, ARTHUR H. Frrnnr, a cltizen of the United States,residing at Wilmette, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Inking Mechanism; and Ihereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,which form part of this specification.

This application is a division of my application for patent on postagemeter and mail markin machine filed March 25th, 1920, Serial 0. 368,701(Case 6424). The present invention relates to inking mechanism for mailmarking machines and postage meters, for impressing stamps uponenvelops, cards or the like of the type shown and described in myPatents No. 753,207, dated February 23, 1904, and No. 1,273,793,

dated July 23, 1918, and in my aforesaid application.

The objects of the present invention are to provide an adjustablesupportv for the inking member, whereby it may be moved into position tocontact with the printer or out of position to contact therewith; toprovide novel means against which the inking roll may be set when out ofposition to engage the printer, and when so set will prop-r erly ink theprinter when moved into inking position; and to provide novel meanswhereby the meter cannot be removed from, or replaced in, the machineunless the inking member is in inoperative positionthus insuring placingof the inking member in operative position before the machine can beefi'ectively operated.

The foregoing and other minor objects are attained by this invention,and the accompanying drawings illustrate one ractical embodiment of theinvention, an I 'will hereinafter describe the same in detail withreference to such drawings; but the invention is not restricted to thespecific constructions and combinations of parts shown, and includessuch variations in form, arrangement and combination as fall within thesco e of the appended claims.

11 said drawings; Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine. Fig. 2 is anenlarged detall view showing the supply roller in difi'erent positionsby means of dotted lines.

Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view on line D 3-3, Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail sectional plan of the tripmechanism.

Fig. 5 is a side view of Fig. 4. 4

General description.

ers 21, 22, hereinafter referred to, by which the letters are directedto and between the impression roller 137 and printer 38, hereinafterreferred to, and after being postmark-stamped the letters are dischargedbetween rollers 108 and 109 in front of the stacker wheel 110, by whichthey are stacked in the usual manner on a table or rack 111.

The aforesaid parts are all actuated in proper time with the mechanismhereinafterto be described but as they form no essential part of thepresent invention and are not claimed herein, ll have not explained orillustrated the same in detail herein.

The trip I mechanism.

The trip roller 22 is preferably journaled on a swingable support andguard 15, which has a part 15 which projects beyond the roller 22, andthese parts are normally yieldingly pressed toward the roller 21 by asuitable spring, such as indicated at 22 in Fig.

'1. The shaft of the roller 21 is mounted in fixed bearings opposite theroller 22 andguard 15, and a fence or guide 16 is arranged beside andbetween the rollers 21 and 22, beside the guard 15, and is slotted toaccommoclate the rollers 21 and 22 so as not to interfere with theircontact with the letter passing between them.

A trip'finger 1 is pivoted on a spindle 27 and has a curved head or end1 which projects in the path of the letter at the meeting line of therollers 21 and 22 so that a letter passing between these rollers, orbetween the fence 16 and guard 15 will strikethis trip finger and willoscillate spindle 27. To

spindle 27 is pinned and arm- 2 and the trip finger and arm 2 oscillateor move as one piece. The trip finger isnormally held-in letter engagingposition by a suitable spring, such as indicated at 28, arm 2 beingarrested by abutting against a stop pin 29 when the trip finger is innormal position.

The arm 2 is adapted to engage the curved and notched end 3 of a triplink 3; the said curved end being supported and ided in a grooved member13. The trip llnk is normally held in position to engage the arm 2 by aspring 20. The other end of trip link 3 is pivoted to one arm 4 of astop lever which is pivoted on a stud 4 and which arm '4 is normallyheld against a stop 18 by means of a spring 19, that thus holds the triplink normally retracted. These parts and their operative connections aremore fully described and shown in my aforesaid original application,Serial N 0. 368,701.

The meter or registering devices.

The meter for registering the operations of the printer comprises abase31; a printer 38; and a casing 34 fastened to this base inclosing theregistering mechanisms and locking devices therefor; as shown andexplained in my aforesaid application, the wholebeing the stamp upon theletter, and may be provided with canceling 'lines if desired. The

postmark-stamp die may be such, for example, as shown in my patent abovereferred to, or my Patent No. 753,207; or in Patents- NO. 1,274,831, andNo. 1,273,793.

The printer is mounted on a spindle 37, journaled in hearings on. themeter; and spindle 37 carries the letter guide wheel 39. These partsmayall be constructed. and operated as-shown and described in my aforesaidapplication.

As shown the top plate of the machine ,is provided with a horizontallydisposed slot into which the base 31 of the meter is slid to place themeter'in operative osi tion, indicated in Figs. 1 and 2, the slot avinggrooves in its sides adapted to be engaged by ribs on the sides ofthebase 31 of the meter; and when inoperative position on the machinethe meter is secured by suitable means as described in my saidapplication.

When the meter is slid into place in the machine the key 47 on the lowerend of the spindle 37 is adapted to telescope with and driven member 20whereby the spindle and printer will be rotated when the parts are inoperative position and the trip mechanism is actuated by the passage ofa letter as explained in my said application.

The inking mechanism.

position shown in full lines in Figs. land 2, where it contacts with theprinter 38,

into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, where it would notcontact with the printer. The inking roller may be /held inoperativeposition to contact with the printer 38 by meanS=0f a catch 125 having atooth adapted to engage'a notch in the end of the support 124 asindicated in Fig. 2, this latch being controlled bya suitable spring'224. i

Fast to the shaft 23 is a cam 14 (Figs. 4 w

and 5) which cam is adapted to engage the.

trip-link 3 and move it out of position to be. engaged by the arm 2whenever the ink roller is swung out of position to contact with theprinter, so that moving the inking roller outof contact with the printer38 automatically renders the trip mechanism ineffective; and thus themachine is prevented from being. run without inking the printer when itis being used to postmarkstamp letters. Also if it is desired to run themachine merely to'seal the letters without printing them the adjustment.of the inkmg mechanism out of the way automatically, through thedescribed devices, renders the tripmechanism and the printerineffective.

ably connected to the slide 124 by'mounting the inking roller on a slide127, which is fastened to the support 124 by a thumb screw 128. When theinking roller 123 is turned out of operative position, asfindicated indotted lines in Fig. 2, it may be adjusted into contact with a gage pin25, which is so fixed in the machine that if the periphery of the inkingroller is set up against this gage pin when the support 124 is in theposition indicated in dottedlines in Fig. 2, then the periphery of theinking roller 123. will properly contact with the printing surfaces onthe printer 38 and properly supply ink thereto when'the inking mechanismis turned to operative position, as shown in full lines in Figs. 1 and2.

This gage pin 25 might be removable but I prefer to have it fixed in themachine.

'i'io Preferably the inking roller 123 is adjust-- k newness I This pinis a simple and eficient device for vent the removal of the meter from(or replacing it in) the machine without first moving the ink roller outof operative position; and thus render it necessary for the operator toreadjust'the inking roller each time the meter is replaced in themachine. For this purpose I preferably attach a pin 320 to the meterbase, at such apoint that when the meter is in the machine, said pinlies close against the left end of the fence '16, as indicated in Fig.2, out of the way,

but the inking roller 123 when in operative position lies' in the pathof pin 320 and consequently it it is attempted to remove the meter fromthe machine without first adjusting the inking roller into inoperativeposition (as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2) the pin 320 will"strike the inking roller as the meter is drawn outward and prevent thecomplete withdrawal of the meter until the inking roller is moved out ofthe way. Of course the meter cannot be replaced in the machine unlessthe inking roller is in imierative position.

'- y providing this pin 320, or equivalent devices, in the machine, itbecomes necessary to readjust the inking roller to operative positioneach time the meter is replaced in the machine; and this pin in suresfirst that the machine will not operate unt1 the inking roller is inoperative position, and also insures that any possible shrinkage orreduction in the size of the inking roller will be compensated forby theoperator adjusting the inking roller against the pin 25,'whichpractically automatically insures compensation for any variationwin sizeof the inking roller, which would naturally be reduced in'size by wear.

While I prefer to use the pin 320 as and for the urpose described and itis simple and eihc1ent, Ido not consider the invention limited to use ofsuch pin as other devices equivalent thereto in function and effectmight be substituted therefor within the scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine of the character specified,

' a printer; an inker; an adjustable support for said inker, whereby itmay be moved into position to contact with the printer or out ofposition to contact therewith; and means for setting the inker when outof operative position so that when so set it will properly ink theprinter when moved into inking position.

2. In a machine of the character specified,

a printer, an inker, and an adjustable support for said inker, wherebyit may be moved into position to contact with the printer or out ofposition to contact therewith; with a device against which the inker maybe set when out of position to engage the printer, so that when so setit will properly ink the printer when moved into inking position.

3. In a machine of the character specified, a printer, an inking roll,and an adjustable support for said inking roll, whereby it may be movedinto position to contact with the printer or out of position to contactthere- I meter, and a device connected with the meter whereby theremoval of the meter is prevented by contact of said device with saidinker unless the latter is first moved into inoperative position. I

5. In a machine of the character specified, a printer; an adjustableinker; a removable meter; and a pin connected with the meter basewhereby the removal of the meter is prevented by contact of said pinwith the inker unless the latter, is first moved into inoperativeposition.

6. In a machine of the character specified, a printer, an inker, anadjustable support for said inker whereby it may be moved into or out ofoperative position a removable meter; and a pin connected with the meterbase whereby the removal from'or insertion of the meter in the machineis prevented by contact of said pin with the inker unless the latter isfirst moved into inoperative position.

7. In a machine of the character specified, a printer; an adjustableinker; a removable meter, a device connected with the meter whereby theremoval of the meter is prevented by contact of said device with saidinker unless the latter is first moved into inoperative position; andmeans for setting the inker when out of operative position so-that theinker may be set when out of position to engage the printer, so thatwhen so set it will properly ink the printer when moved into inkinposition.

' 9. n a machine of the character specified, a printer, an inker, anadjustable support for said inker whereby it may be moved into or out ofoperative position; a removable meter; may be set when out of positionto engage the and a pin connected with the meter base printer,l so thatwhen so set it will properly whereby the removal from or insertio'nofthe ink the printer when moved into inking posimeter in the machine isprevented by contact tion.

of said pin with the inker unless the latter is In testimony that Iclaim the foregoing as 10 first moved into inoperative position; with myown, I aflix my signature. v

a relatively fixed pin against which the inker ARTHUR H. BITNEY.

